Sam Tanenhaus talked about his book The Death of Conservatism (Random House, 2009). In his book Mr. Tanenhaus gives an intellectual history of conservatism, saying that for seventy-five years, conservatives have been split into two factions, the "realists" who believe in the virtues of government and the "revanchists" who distrust government and society and seek to destroy civil society through ideological warfare rather than preserve traditions. He argues that the "revanchists," who have won control of the Republican Party, are not true conservatives. Steven Hayward and Henry Olsen responded to his remarks and joined him in discussion. They replied to questions from members of the audience. This was the first of the monthly Bradley Lectures of the 2009-2010 season. It was held at the American Enterprise Institute at 5:30 p.m. on September 8, 2009.

Sam Tanenhaus is the editor of the New York Times Book Review and the Week in Review. His books include Whittaker Chambers: A Biography. Mr. Tanenhaus is currently working on a biography of William F. Buckley.